This empirical paper reports on the development of a professional development initiative, namely the word sum-wheel, which teachers developed collaboratively. The study's objective was to determine how teachers' mathematics word problem-solving instruction could be enhanced through the development of the word-sum wheel using participatory action…

Smooth implementation of environmental education at public schools in South Africa is hindered by various factors. Consequently, teachers have been unsuccessful or have had only partial success in implementing environmental education in their classrooms to conscientise learners about the environment and the harmful impact of littering. The purpose…

Teachers, specifically those who work in under-resourced contexts, face many challenges within their workplace that negatively affect their experiences of well-being. Although research indicates that if teacher well-being improves, a more enabling climate for teaching and learning is created, little support is available for teachers in this…

Predetermined professional development (PD) programmes delivered by external experts are the usual approach to enhancing the teaching of physical education (PE) in disadvantaged school contexts. This generally does not result in sustained learning and development once the PE professionals withdraw. Addressing the lack of teacher- and…

Background: Mathematics education is a significant issue in the South African context. Learners' achievement levels are markedly low as suggested by both national and international studies. The teaching and learning of fractions in particular have been identified as challenging. Aim: The aim of this article is to share some of the outcomes derived…

This article reports on a community engagement project by the University of South Africa's Department of Adult Basic Education to address the challenges faced by new literates in establishing and managing projects and small businesses. The main objective of the article was to assess how capacity and training workshops have been used as tools to…

Background: English Second Language (ESL) learners have difficulty constructing sentences due to internalising information in their home language and thereafter translating it into English. Learners who have difficulty speaking English generally encounter problems writing it, which hampers their creative writing ability. Objectives: The purpose of…

Socially inclusive strategies encourage empowering, progressive and sustainable responses to social challenges and needs. These strategies are made possible through inclusion and equitable consideration of diverse contributions of those affected by the problems, and who feel obliged to find solutions to the problems. In this paper, the principles…

In South Africa teachers are faced with the introduction of yet another revised curriculum. Higher education institutes are developing programmes to help teachers through the transition. This article describes such an intervention. The research addresses the question: how could mathematical reasoning cartoons be used as a tool to support teacher…

International literacy tests, such as PIRLS show that South African primary school learners compare negatively with their peers in other parts of the world. Added to this, learners in rural schools in the country perform significantly worse than their peers who attend schools in urban areas, with the former learners also having other challenges,…

Teenage pregnancy among school-going youth is a concern worldwide, but in socially-economically challenged environments it is a result of, and contributory factor to, a complex web of social injustice. In South Africa, most of the school-based prevention interventions to date have been adult-designed and imparted, with the voice of the target…

An unacceptable number of learners in under-resourced schools in South Africa are failing to perform adequately in national and international benchmark tests. Poor learner performance has been linked to poor-quality teaching, which, in turn, can be attributed in part to a lack of instructional leadership at schools. According to policy, heads of…

This article reports on an investigation into the use of action research for beginner teachers' professional development through the use of peer mentoring. Action research principles were applied by the mentor and the participating mentees/peers, forming a scholarly community of practice. The mentees were empowered to transform their teaching…

The need to work in partnership with communities in a meaningful and impactful way has become a core part of university planning in many countries around the world. In the Global South, the potential for the Eurocentric knowledges and power structures to dominate such partnerships is pervasive. This article reports on findings of a participatory…

When academics, who occupy a traditional position of power and privilege, engage with community members whose thinking, attitudes, and responses have been shaped by ongoing sociohistorical oppression and disadvantage, democratic participation is not easy to attain. Yet, unless community members feel able to participate freely, the valuable local…